..Gary Dretzka
..Noah Forrest
..Leonard Klady
..R.J. Matson
..David Poland
..Douglas Pratt
..Ray Pride
..Michael Wilmington

June 27, 2004

For Immediate Release

“FAHRENHEIT 9/11” BECOMES AMERICA’S #1 MOVIE, REWRITING RECORD BOOK IN FIRST WEEKEND IN NATIONAL RELEASE

Critically-Acclaimed Film Achieves $21.8 Million Opening Weekend Gross on 868 Screens; Theaters Sold Out Across the Country; Fahrenheit Fever Plays in Peoria

SANTA MONICA, CA, VANCOUVER, BC and NEW YORK, NY, June 27, 2004 – “Fahrenheit 9/11” continued to build momentum as a national cultural phenomenon, setting numerous box office records on its way to a $21.8 million opening weekend on just 868 screens, becoming the #1 movie in the country, it was announced by Tom Ortenberg, President of Lions Gate Films Releasing, and Jonathan Sehring, President of IFC Entertainment.

Michael Moore’s powerful film which has already established itself as the must see movie of the summer achieved a remarkable $25,115 per screen average, performing strongly in big cities and small towns in all 50 states, Democratic and Republican strongholds and every geographic region of the country. Fueled by rave reviews and all-time single-day record grosses at the Loews Village 7 and Lincoln Plaza in Manhattan on its opening Wednesday, FAHRENHEIT 9/11 literally sold out theatres from Peoria, Illinois, to Fayetteville, NC (home of Fort Bragg) and, by Sunday morning, seemed poised for a powerful celebration of America’s birthday during the upcoming four-day Fourth of July weekend.

"The soul of this movie is that it stands up for our soldiers on the ground in Iraq by asking the question the majority of Americans want answered: Why are our soldiers there? This is a question that should have been asked over a year ago and that is why I believe the movie is doing so well and why I am so proud of it,” said Michael Moore. “Harvey and Bob are marketing geniuses -- but I've known that since I first met them 15 years ago. They have been the independent filmmaker’s best friend and, with this film, they have been the best friend of the American people. Their creative energies, along with our partners at Lions Gate and IFC Films, have ensured that this movie will bring the truth about the last four years to a majority of Americans," he added.

"This is a historic achievement from an incredible and courageous filmmaker. We are proud to be a part of it," said Harvey and Bob Weinstein of the Fellowship Adventure Group.

“It is a testament to Michael Moore’s creative brilliance and a truly memorable experience for Lions Gate to be part of motion picture history,” said Ortenberg. “This is a film that speaks to the American spirit and has clearly been embraced by the American movie going public. It is performing on a level that is unprecedented for a documentary, unheard of for an 868-screen opening and unparalleled in terms of the collaborative relationship among Lions Gate, IFC Films, Harvey and Bob Weinstein’s Fellowship Adventure Group and Michael Moore’s incredible creative team. If there is one message that has been delivered above all others, it is that censorship will not stand. FAHRENHEIT 9/11 has clearly achieved its goal of stimulating an open and passionate national discourse on critical issues beyond everybody’s expectations, and nothing about this film will surprise me going forward.”

"In an age of market tested blockbusters and short term distribution strategies, it is refreshing to see a true passion project receive this kind of overwhelming and historic response," stated Jonathan Sehring, President of IFC Entertainment. "From the results we are now seeing, it looks like this will be the summer of Michael Moore, and for filmmakers everywhere, FAHRENHEIT 9/11 has proven that strong content will win out when challenged by politics. As a distributor, it is gratifying to be part of a loyal and united team of industry leaders, who have worked tirelessly in support of this picture. The success we have seen this weekend is a credit to Michael Moore's vision and voice and we believe is just the beginning as we continue to add theaters in the weeks to come."

Among the numerous records already set by FAHRENHEIT 9/11 are the following:

*Highest opening weekend ever for a documentary of any type (including IMAX and concert films)

*Highest opening ever for a wide release under 1000 screens (beating previous record holder “Rocky III” in 1982)

*Highest opening ever for a Palm d’Or winner (topping previous record holder “Pulp Fiction” in 1994)

*Opening weekend numbers have already outgrossed the total domestic box office for Academy Award® winner “Bowling for Columbine”, Michael Moore’s previous release

*Achieved 3rd highest per screen average opening for the year to date among wide releases (behind only “Passion of the Christ” & “Shrek 2”)

The film’s distributors will expand the movie for Fourth of July weekend and again on Friday, July 9. Specifics of the expansions will be announced during the week.

This year’s winner of the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, FAHRENHEIT 9/11 is being released by a coalition of companies that includes Bob and Harvey Weinstein’s Fellowship Adventure Group, a newly-created special-purpose company; Lions Gate Films, the motion picture production and distribution arm of Lions Gate Entertainment (AMEX and TSX: LGF); and IFC Films. Pay TV rights will be handled by Showtime, Lions Gate’s Pay TV partner.

FAHRENHEIT 9/11 is Michael Moore’s first feature film since BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE, which won the 2003 Academy Award® for Best Documentary Feature. FAHRENHEIT 9/11 brought Moore his first Palme d’Or and his second major award from the Cannes Film Festival, following the 55th Anniversary Prize he received at the 2002 Festival. Moore is the first documentary filmmaker in cinema history to be honored twice at Cannes.

Lions Gate Entertainment is the premier independent producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library of approximately 8000 titles is one of the largest in the entertainment industry. The Lions Gate brand name is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe.

IFC Entertainment consists of IFC Productions, a production company that provides financing for select independent feature films and offers filmmakers unusual creative freedom to realize their personal cinematic visions; IFC Films, a leading theatrical film distribution company bringing the best of independent and specialized films to theaters; and InDigEnt, an initiative for established filmmakers to explore the medium of digital video.

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